Glogg (Swedish Mulled Wine)

Glogg is powerful stuff. A Scandinavian drink that warms the soul on cold winter nights, it’s perfect this holiday season!

This recipe is adapted from the Swedish side of my family’s cookbook. Glögg, pronounced like glug, is one of those drinks that may sneak up on you – I affectionately call it the Long Island Iced Tea of mulled wine (yeah… it’s gotta a lot of booze in it). There are a number of variations, but this particular recipe is made with red wine, rum, bourbon, brandy, warm spices and some fruit. The warm liquid raises the temperature of the mouth and stomach, and pushes blood to the surface of the skin temporarily giving you a warm feeling. You don’t have to purchase expensive wines and spirits for this drink – just a nice table wine you enjoy. The robust spices will overpower any subtle notes that more costly drinks contain. Something inexpensive, but not cheap is the way to go.

When the pot of glogg is warming on the stove, make sure the contents do not boil – boiling will quickly dissipate the alcohol. Speaking of alcohol content, this stuff is high-octane, but it doesn’t taste like it – so be careful! I don’t call it the Swedish Long Island Iced Tea for nothing!

Glogg is powerful stuff. A Scandinavian drink that warms the soul on cold winter nights, it's perfect this holiday season!

Author: Kathleen | Hapa Nom Nom

Recipe type: Drink

Cuisine: Swedish

Serves: 4

Ingredients

1 750ml bottle dry red wine

1 cup white rum

1 cup bourbon

½ cup brandy

¾ cup sugar

¾ cup dark raisins

¼ cup raw almonds, blanched (almonds with no skins)*

1 entire orange peel

1 cinnamon stick

¼ teaspoon whole cloves

5 cardamon pods

Instructions

In a large saucepan over medium-low heat, combine all of the ingredients. (Do not use an aluminum or copper pot since the metal can impart a metallic taste while the alcohol is warming).

Allow to warm until small bubbles form along the edges. (Make sure the mixture does not boil. Boiling will decrease the alcohol content).

Carefully strain the solids from the liquid (I like to fish-out the raisins and almonds and nibble on them later).

Serve warm and enjoy!

Notes

* To blanch the almonds bring a small pot of water to a boil. Place the raw almonds into the water and boil for 1 minute. Pour into a colander and rinse well under cold water. Blot the almonds with a paper towel and then gently squeeze the almonds out of their papery skins.

Comments

I’ve never used spiced rum, but I’m sure you could! You may have to adjust the amount of spices, so I would start with maybe half of the recommended spices, allow to steep for about 15 minutes, taste, and add more if needed. Please let me know how it turns out!

You’ve done it again!! I’ve seen plenty of mulled wine recipes “around” but YOURS is the one that stands out. Oi, this is getting added to my Christmas menu!! Touch of European class to the Christmas table 🙂

Thanks, Mira! I know, I’m kind of surprised it hasn’t caught on in the States – or really any mulled wine for that matter! I LOVE walking around the Christmas-marts in Europe with a warm mug of mulled wine – I wish we had those here!

I do love anything like this at Christmas, Kathleen – love mulled wine in particular – but I’ve never had anything that packs as much ‘punch’ as this! Those Swedes know how to celebrate Christmas properly!

Most Popular Recipes on Hapa Nom Nom

Quick and Easy Recipes – On Hapa Nom Nom!

Sharing Recipes

All images, recipes, and text on this site are my intellectual property and are protected under copyright. You are welcome to write about my recipe in your own words; however, please re-write the recipe and instructions and link back to Hapa Nom Nom as the original source. Thank you!